Not satisfied

[ruth11]

This may get asked all the time, but I'm after some advice please.

I've tried the Intellicig, the Titan 510 and now the liberro. I like the liberro because it's small with cartomisers with a very portable pcc case. It seems to produce a nice amount of vapour and the vanilla juice I got from them is nice and smooth, no weird throat sting like I've had from other juices. It is more realistic in size so I feel more like I'm smoking, but something still isn't working for me.

I smoke about 5 Golden Virginia roll ups a day, double that when I'm out in the pub, which is probably once a week. So not a massive smoker, but still can't stop! In fact, I don't want to stop. I want to replace these roll ups with vaping because I like smoking but I am thinking of my health. So, when I want a cig, I've tried just vaping my e-cig for a few mins, but I always end up going outside for a real cig afterwards! It just doesn't seem to satisfy my need and my brain says "well, that was nice, but now go have a real one". I'm currently on the 18mg strength juice. I don't particularly like the tobacco flavoured ones, my current favourite is a vanilla flavour.

Is this likely to be a juice strength thing? Or a hardware thing? I'm not sure what to try next. Ideally I want to wean myself off nicotine altogether so I want to get down to 0mg juice, but if I need a higher mg juice for now to get rid of the mental issue of vaping rather than smoking, I'll give it a try. If it's a hardware thing and I really need one of these big manual ego things, I will, I just don't want to waste more money on hardware than I have to.

Obviously, battery life isn't really a major factor for me, because I'll use it for probably an hour max on a normal day, maybe 2 hours on a pub day.

Any advice gratefully received.
Thanks

 

[Michael Curry]

Just a guess, of course, but it sounds like the 18mg simply isn't enough to get past the craving. That's only 18mg in an ml of fluid, and you wouldn't even absorb all of that. A full ml of liquid is quite a bit of vaping compared to what it sounds like you are doing. For someone that vapes a lot, there is a steady supply of nicotine coming in. But for occasional use, it might take something a bit stronger to get the job done in a short period.

From what you said about your smoking, I really don't see why a smaller e-cig wouldn't work out - with the right liquid in it. As you said, battery life isn't a big factor, and one of the main things that lead people to something like an eGo is the longer battery life.

To reduce the throat sensation, you might try a liquid with more VG content - but basically, that feeling is mostly a function of nicotine content. That said, remember - vaping is different than smoking, so it feels different as well. You're used to the feeling of smoke, so you don't notice it. With more time and exposure to it, you would notice the effect from vapor less as well due to familiarity. PUt a ring on a finger where you don't usually wear one. You'll be very aware of it. But after a while, it starts to feel 'normal'. Maybe not the ultimate analogy, but it's after 4am - best I could do.

 

[Kazoo]

Wow, I don't know what to say here. As a new vaper my self I found equipment had a lot to do with it. I wasn't happy until I got my Ego style battery. But i was decently happy with my 510 battery I got. That titan should have been a very good choice.

When you say your not satisfied, if you stop and think about it, what part of "not satisfied" is actually peeking up. Is it just the craving in general? Does it not produce enough vapor that you don't feel like your smoking? Is it the fact that you don't have an actual cig in your hand, tactile feel?

If its the craving it self, as a light smoker I would have thought 18mg would be more then enough, but I would definitely give a crack at some stronger juice. Everyone is different!

If it's the whole I don't feel like I'm smoking not enough vapor thing, I would try a few things. You have a 510 setup with a 3.7v battery (the Titan 510). Get yourself some Boge 2.0 cartomizers and a good bottle of juice with say 70/30 PG/VG Ratio with 24mg Nicotine. Don't get a big bottle, just a sample size. This is going to be the fill your own method, its way better then any prefilled. Boge carts are easy to fill, you can just drip the juice slowly on to the filler untill it won't soak up anymore. Or your can get a pack of clearomizers and the juice. These are different in you need a syringe to fill them and they don't have a filler. Just a tank with a wick running through the heating element. I personally really really like these. I'm using CE3 Clearomizers now and I love em! Kind of hard but really easy to fill, there are more detailed posts running around this forum.

If its the tactile feel, your really just going to have to fight that one. A buddy of mine actually mentioned he really didn't like the e-cig because it didn't have that "ritual" feel of lighting up an actual cig.

I wish you lots of luck and welcome to the best e-cig forum in the world! (IMO)

EDIT: Forgot to mention that buddy of mine now likes to vape but my custom juice with a low nic content just wasn't doing it for him. So he put it down for awhile. Hopefully he will start back up now that I gave him an old bottle of 16mg juice I didn't really like.

 

[Maximillian]

Heyas Ruth,

I've read, and it seems to be true from my experience, that the nic from a pv doesn't get absorbed into the lungs as readily as the nic in smoke. But, the vapor will coat your throat/mouth/sinuses, and will be absorbed that way, just slower. So myself, if I wait until I have a nicotene craving, vaping just doesn't satisfy it, so I'll have an analog. But, if I'm paying attention and vape often, and before I have a nic craving, I seem perfectly content with just the vaping.


Hope this helps,
Maximillian the Vaguely Disreputable

 

[ruth11]

Thanks Guys,
Some interesting things to think about.
I'm not really sure exactly what it is. I am aware that my addiction is more mental than it is physical. I can and have stopped smoking for a few weeks/months and always ultimately forget why I wanted to stop, convince myself I don't smoke enough for it to be a major problem anyway, life's too short to deprive myself etc etc and so I start again. I gather that after just 2 days of no nicotine the physical dependency and cravings should be gone, so it's definitely a mental thing.
So I suspect my problem with this is also mental. Which maybe does point to not really feeling like I'm smoking, which I would say is a vapour thing. I know vaping tastes better than smoking, but that doesn't stop me still feeling like I want a foul tasting cig! I think I'll have a read of the review sections, find myself a higher strength vanilla flavour VG that gets good reviews, and see what happens. I'll also try out my 510 again, not used it for a while.
I'll also try vaping more often, not just when I want a cig and see if doing that stops me wanting.

 

[cskent]

When I first started vaping I had purchased 18mg juice. I kept having cravings too. I moved up to 24mg and it pretty much went away. I was using a 510 and wasn't getting the throat hit I wanted though. I got an eGo and some LR atomizers and all was good. I haven't had a smoke in 16 months, and I don't want one.

 

[rwnielsen]

What helped me most was strong liquids to start, mostly 36mg. I would vape myself dizzy at times and wouldn't even want to smoke. I have since cut back on my nicotine levels and my vaping. I was a heavy smoker for 45 years. eGo batteries really made a difference for me and I still use them daily with a LR carto. Once you find the right combination of setup and juice you'll be good to go. Don't be too hard on yourself if you smoke one now and then. You're heading in the right direction and there's plenty of support right here.
Welcome to the ECF

 

[mooreted]

Make sure you take long, slow drags and blow out slowly. It helps to blow out through your nose to help absorb more, and you get more flavor that way. Nic form e-cigs doesn't absorb as quickly as cigarettes. If I have a major nic fit I'll even hold the vapor in my lungs for a few seconds.

There is a chance that you are actually addicted to one of the other 4000 chemicals in cigarettes. And naturally there is a major psychological hurdle to get over as well. Patience and persistence will go a long way.

Good luck, we'll help however we can.

 

[madjack]

...the nic from vaping doesn't get absorbed as fast as from smoking...I would go up in nic level to at least a 24mg nic and see if that helps...for a faster kick in the head, a higher nic level can help immensely...I don't think you have a hardware problem due to the smoking/vaping habits you describe...............
madjack

 

[carpedebass]

I would advise you to keep the gear you have, up the nic and most of all DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE ANALOGS!! Just vape your higher mg juice. We have a strong tendency to do what is most pleasurable for us. Most find vaping to be more a pleasurable experience than smoking. Just relax and do what you do. If you still have 5 analogs per day for a while, don't beat yourself up over it. One day you'll wake up as I did and realize that you haven't had an analog is days...then it's time to go vape only and chunk the stinkies!

 

[ruth11]

Thanks all

Some very useful information. Thanks for the encouragement too! I'll persist and see what happens

 

[swedishfish]

Thanks Guys,
Some interesting things to think about.
I'm not really sure exactly what it is. I am aware that my addiction is more mental than it is physical. I can and have stopped smoking for a few weeks/months and always ultimately forget why I wanted to stop, convince myself I don't smoke enough for it to be a major problem anyway, life's too short to deprive myself etc etc and so I start again. I gather that after just 2 days of no nicotine the physical dependency and cravings should be gone, so it's definitely a mental thing. So I suspect my problem with this is also mental. Which maybe does point to not really feeling like I'm smoking, which I would say is a vapour thing. I know vaping tastes better than smoking, but that doesn't stop me still feeling like I want a foul tasting cig! I think I'll have a read of the review sections, find myself a higher strength vanilla flavour VG that gets good reviews, and see what happens. I'll also try out my 510 again, not used it for a while.
I'll also try vaping more often, not just when I want a cig and see if doing that stops me wanting.

That's your addiction talking to you.

They say it takes about 3 weeks to develop a habit. Try to get past the three week point and see how it goes.

 

[dormouse]

It's a number of things -

1. Flavor - some people are not satisfied on food flavors when they start vaping (like me). I found food flavor juices GAVE me analog cravings as if I had just eaten and I have found others like me. I had to vape tobacco flavors the first two months to be satisfied, though I could mix food flavors into the tobacco in increasing amounts until I was finally satisfied by food flavors alone. But I still vape one near-tobacco flavor (a cocoa tobacco with almost no tobacco flavor) and a sweet vanilla. Some other new vapers are the opposite and cannot vape tobacco flavors or they are reminded of cigarettes and want one. And some can vape any flavor right away. Figure out which you are.

2. Heat - you are not going to get heat with small ecigs. The hottest is KR808D-1 (3.7v, used with 2.5 ohm cartos) which may not be very available in the UK. Slim ecigs can be damaged by lower ohms "LR" atomizers and cartomizers which would give more heat. To use those, you need batteries 450mah+ which means fat battery models like the 3.7v Riva 510 SE (see Liberty-flights.co.uk) and other fat battery models and mods.

3. Hit -
Nicotine = hit
Juices high in PG let hit through best, VG dulls hit and flavor but adds thicker vapor
Heat enhances nicotine's hit
(I use blends like 80PG/20VG because it's comforting to have some nice vapor, but I want hit)

 

[CarrieD]

I would advise you to keep the gear you have, up the nic and most of all DON'T WORRY ABOUT THE ANALOGS!! Just vape your higher mg juice. We have a strong tendency to do what is most pleasurable for us. Most find vaping to be more a pleasurable experience than smoking. Just relax and do what you do. If you still have 5 analogs per day for a while, don't beat yourself up over it. One day you'll wake up as I did and realize that you haven't had an analog is days...then it's time to go vape only and chunk the stinkies!

+1 on this - couldn't have said it better.

 

[Baldr]

I think you need more nicotine. Then 18mg isn't doing it for you - you vape that, and then want a cigarette.

I was a very heavy smoker for a very long time. When I bought an eGo, my smoking dropped a lot right away, and over a couple of months, I was down from 3 packs a day to 10 cigs a day. But I couldn't get off the cigs. I'd get cravings right after meals.

I was (and still am) using juice with 24mg nicotine. I bought an atomizer to drip, and some 30mg juice, and started dripping with the 30 when I get after-meal cravings. As soon as I did that, it was easy to quit. I still do the 24mg as my "all day", and I have the 30 if I feel cravings. (The cravings have pretty much gone away now, so I don't use the 30 very often.)

In a month or two, I'll try switching to a lower nic level, in hopes of weaning off the nicotine gradually.

It took me 3 months to get completely off the cigs, but I'm pretty sure that if I'd tried the 30mg juice earlier, I'd have quit them sooner. Even so, I don't think you have to rush to quit. Just keep vaping, keep experimenting to find what works for you, and I think sooner or later, you'll find that you're vaping, not smoking.